The Defining Time
by Caera1996
Summary: AU. Overall rating is M. Please see "Chapter 1" for a full summary. This Part: Jim has a moment that throws him back to his past, and Manny gets an amazing surprise when they arrive at the new village.
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** The Defining Time  
**Author:** Caera1996  
**Rating:** R/NC-17  
**Disclaimer:** Not mine

**Summary:** AU. Jim Kirk is a member of the International Red Cross working in Haiti on a polio vaccination campaign with his section. When the earthquake strikes, they do everything they can to help people who have lost everything. In the midst of this crisis, Jim – who'd left his life in the States, and an important person, behind in a bid to get away from his past – comes face to face with a second chance he never counted on having. Now, trying to figure out how to move forward without losing everything he's gained, his life and the lives of those he cares about are threatened as they work to bring aid to those who need it most. Faced with an impossible situation, Jim has to embrace who he was in order to save himself and the person he loves. Even if it breaks him all over again.

**Note about the International Red Cross and Red Crescent**

The International Society of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent work around the world to make life better for people. Providing primarily food, shelter and medical help to people in countries torn apart by war, weather, or natural disasters, the volunteers face challenges that range from bureaucratic hold-ups to violence. They are able to operate, for the most part, because of their strict policy of neutrality in _any_ situation, and they are heavily reliant on donations to bring materials, food, medicines, and hope to those who have almost nothing. If you'd like to donate to the Red Cross / Red Crescent (you can choose the global campaign you want to support), please visit their site:

www. icrc. org/ eng/ donations/ index. jsp

If you are interested in helping (donating your time or money) your local Red Cross chapter, please visit the national site and follow the link to your local chapter:

www. redcross. org

In order to follow the links, bring all parts of them together (delete all spaces). Or, just Google it!

**Note about the Characters:**

There will only be two ST characters named in this story. The others may be recognizable in spirit or other description.


	2. Chapter 2

"Civilization exists by geological consent, subject to change without notice."

-Will Durant

**-The First 35 Seconds and After-**

The plates upon which the continents are built fit together like a jigsaw puzzle across the surface of the Earth. The continental crust itself is the thinnest layer of the planet, encapsulating and floating on the immense power and heat of the mantle layer…stable only because the pressure and heat is stable, and subject to violent change any day, at any time, with no warning at all.

On January 12, 2010, at 4:53 pm, along a fault that delineated the edges of two plates that met like poorly cut puzzle pieces, the Caribbean and North American tectonic plates slipped past each other, forced into motion by a swell of heat and pressure from beneath. That slight movement, only 7 miles below the surface of the Earth near Port-au-Prince, unleashed one of the strongest tremblors in two centuries of Haiti's history, and in approximately 35 seconds hundreds of thousands of people had their world torn apart.

The devastation was unspeakable. Schools, hospitals, government buildings…homes…none built strongly enough to withstand the movement of the earth collapsed, trapping anyone not able to make it outside. Children home from school, the elderly unable to move quickly enough, mothers preparing dinner, fathers just getting home…buried under the rubble that was created in just _35 seconds._ And so many who already had so little suddenly had a lot less.

No warning. No time to get out…geological consent changed. Without notice.

Help couldn't come quickly enough, and the Haitian people were never the kind to wait for others to come to their aid anyway. Pulling together quickly, neighbors started desperately digging, answering the calls of people trapped beneath the destruction, saving themselves. Untrained, without the help of digging equipment, rescue dogs, or the ability to shore up unstable structures, and working through terrifying aftershocks without hesitation, regular people became heroes, reuniting families, comforting the injured, taking care of each other.

By the time aid arrived, tent cities had already been established, providing meager cover from the elements…first the unrelenting sun, and then the days of rain. Medical help and food and water slowly made their way into the damaged areas. There was no way to decide which area needed the help that was coming more than another…most of the affected area was completely demolished, and people had nothing. The injured were brought to designated medical areas, first tents, then pod-like structures provided by the medical divisions of the world's armies, then make-shift hospitals in buildings that did manage to escape relatively unscathed.

Outsiders joined in the search and rescue efforts. There were daily miracles, and every life recovered was rejoiced. But there was also heartrending loss…so much loss. For a while it seemed to the workers that the dead outnumbered the living, and while families were able to celebrate those who made it back to them, no one was truly able to mourn those who were lost. There wasn't time, and daily strength was focused on simply surviving, and it was easier to submit to the numbness…temporary though it was.

Quickly, too quickly for these heroes and survivors to be able to really process what had happened to them in those 35 seconds, the immediate horror of the situation was quickly pushed aside for other real world concerns. There was no fresh water, there was very little food, cholera, measles, and malaria started showing up in the weakest of the population. The young, the elderly, the injured or those already sick…they were all susceptible to illness, dehydration, hunger, exposure, and infection.

Aid on the ground, in the form of food and water and blankets and clothing, couldn't make it to all of those who desperately needed it. Roads were blocked by fallen structures, and in some places they looked as if they'd been ripped apart. In some areas people were panicked and angry at their government's perceived failure and aid workers found themselves in the midst of rioters, all trying to reach what could be the difference between life and death. Forces on the ground tried to control the crowds, keeping them back and setting up a distribution system that didn't reach far enough into the city and surrounding areas to help many of the survivors.

But never willing to give in, never willing to lose the faith that kept them going, never willing to let their determination wilt, the people again looked to themselves for solutions. Temporary tent cities sectioned into neighborhoods and leaders came forward, making their way to where supplies were being handed out and collecting what they could for those in the area they were responsible for. Women found plots of land to start tilling, to supplement their meager fare with vegetables. On the outskirts of the main city, children ventured into the wooded areas, looking for fruit and edible plants, and people again started fishing and working the surrounding fields that had supplied them with food and materials before.

Giving and trading and bartering...and stealing, when necessary…kept the survivors going with not enough of anything. Slowly, painfully, and hard won, a new normal settled into the lives of a people who refused to back down. The visitors, the helpers, came and went. They brought medicine and food and water, when they could get it out of the bureaucratic red tape. When it all got to be too much…too much need, too much poverty, too much despair just barely held back…the visitors packed up and went home, flying off to wherever they came from, or on to their next cause, until it was time to leave again.

Most of them, anyway.

But the people who called this place home didn't have that luxury, and many wouldn't have want to leave, even if given the choice. They were bound by family, by loyalty, by faith. And long after the world's attention waned, the cameras turned off, the rush of adrenaline and desperation for _Please, God, just one more miracle_ that powered them through the first couple of months, families started trying to put the pieces of their broken lives back together. They mourned their incredible losses, they learned to live without their loved ones, and somehow, they found the strength to keep going.


	3. Chapter 3

**-One Day After-**

Pain. Thobbing pain everywhere. Head mostly. Manoucheka raised a hand to her forehead, keeping her eyes closed against the light that seemed to sear her eyes through her closed eyelids. She lay there, taking stock of her condition. Despite the hurt, could move her feet, could shift her legs, though not much. Something heavy had her pinned. Her arms worked, though her left shoulder was paining, and it was that side of her head that hurt too.

_What had happened?_

She tried to take a breath and ended up choking on the dust, her mouth and throat completely dry.

"Oh!" she cried out, tears of pain flooding her eyes. She brought her other hand to her head, holding it together…it felt like the coughing was making her split apart. _Splitting headache_ she remembered suddenly. This is what her father had meant. "Oh, please God, please," she murmured. She tried to sit up, ended up crying out, her already blurry vision darkening on the edges, tunneling closed. Giving up on the idea of sitting up, she gave in and closed her eyes and took slow deep breaths, struggling to hang on to consciousness. Everything was very muddled, but she had the vague thought that if she let go and relaxed into the darkness that was waiting for her, tempting her with the promise of relief from the pain and thirst that was beginning to register, she might never wake up.

And the sunlight was too pretty…too pretty to never see again.

She lay there, waiting to see what would happen. Would someone find her? What had happened? Confusion warred with fear, the emotions caught behind the pain and blackness, muted…though she was aware enough to realize that she should feel more afraid. The earth shook several more times, and in those instances, the terror came roaring in…as she waited to see if more of the building was going to come down around her, finish breaking her head.

The terror also brought clarity, and in those moments – crying out in fright as small chunks of stone and concrete fell around her – she had flashes of memory that explained how she'd gotten to this point, and remind her that her father…her father _was_ with her. But he hadn't called for her, hadn't tried to find her…

"Papa!" she cried weakly. "Anmwe tanpri. Fe mal. Papa, where are you?" She called out to him until her parched throat silenced her voice. She opened her eyes, prepared for the glare…but there wasn't one. It was dark. _Why? Is it night? Or have I gone blind?_

She was so dehydrated, she had no tears left, and finally, exhausted, she couldn't hold it off any longer. She was losing. She could feel her body relaxing as she started to slip away.

"_Hello! Anyone here? Bonjour! Hello?"_

Manoucheka gasped, the voice yanking her back from the edge.

"Wi, anmwe!" she tried to call out. There was nothing…no voice, no sound. Just a harsh whisper. "Please, help me," she tried again. Nothing. She could hear people moving around…closer to her, then further. Panic at the idea of being overlooked made her able to gather her wits a bit, and she fumbled in the rubble, feeling for a stone. Her hand closed on one, and she immediately began banging it against another, making as much noise as she could.

_Please, God, please. Please let them hear me_, she silently begged.

Jim Kirk paused, stilling himself in mid-step, and motioning other members of the search party to be quiet.

"Shh…guys. Shut up," he said. Everyone froze, listening. _Bang, bang, bang_…it was unmistakable…someone was in there. "This way! Hello? We can hear you. Keep banging the rock, okay?"

"Jim! Wait! It's not stable in there!" Duncan called out.

"It doesn't look too bad here," Jim called back. In the gloom of early evening, the shadows made it difficult to see, and he flashed his light over the floor. "Here! Here! There's someone here….Duncan, bring the board, everyone else hold on a minute!"

"Bloody fool," Duncan grumbled, but he followed Jim's voice anyway. As usual. "Gonna get us all killed. You're not even search and rescue!" he yelled.

Jim wasn't paying any attention to the grumbling Scotsman. Kneeling beside the young woman, he took her hand as she let the rock drop. Her face crumpled like she was going to cry as she tried to focus on him.

"Hey, hey," he said soothingly. He catalogued what he could see. Looked like a pretty bad head injury. "It's okay. We're going to get you out. I'm Jim," he said, touching his own chest. "Ki jan ou rele?" he asked hesitantly.

"Manoucheka," she whispered. "I speak English."

He tried to copy her pronunciation, making a smile flit across her features. "How about Manny?" he asked. "Easier for the moun blan, wi?"

She smiled again, the fear in her eyes lessening. She cleared her throat slightly, wincing. "Water?"

"As soon as we get you out," Jim promised. He played the flashlight over her head, noting the blood in her hair and around her. _Come the fuck on, Duncan_, he willed him. _What's taking so long?_

"Hey Manny, is there anyone in here with you?" Jim asked, keeping his voice light and casual. He sincerely hoped not. The Church wasn't a huge structure, but he didn't relish the idea of having to search it. Contrary to Duncan's slightly-exaggerated belief, he wasn't a careless idiot.

The girl, _Manny_, he reminded himself, swallowed painfully and looked like she might cry again, if she had any moisture left in her. "My father," she said brokenly. "He is the pastor here. I…I have not heard him at all. He didn't answer me."

Duncan came up to them, a medical pack and backboard with him. He and Jim exchanged a glance, Duncan giving a quick shake of his head, and Jim pursed his lips. That explained the hold up.

"Okay, Manny…it's okay. Try to stay calm. We'll look for him," Jim said. Manoucheka's grip tightened on his hand as a couple more people surrounded her, using manpower to carefully lift one of the wooden rafters off of her and easing her onto the backboard, strapping her in place. Her breathing became slightly erratic and she looked frightened.

"Mista' Jim," she whispered, holding him as tightly as she could, her hand trembling in his. "Tanpri pa kite m'."

Jim looked up at Elise, the only woman in his group, and a Creole speaker. "She wants you to stay with her," she said.

Jim looked down at the young woman, a gentle smile on his face. "Well, of course I'll stay with you. Nowhere I'd rather be. We ready?" he asked, looking up at everyone. Nods all around. "Okay, then…nice and smooth. Let's be careful not to jostle her."

Picking carefully over the loose stone and rubble, they brought her out of the ruins of what was once her father's Church and gently loaded her into the flatbed of the truck. The roads were pretty clear, and it shouldn't be too bumpy a ride, but with that head injury she had…trained as they were, they all knew they had to be as careful with her as possible.

Jim sat in the back with her, gently cupping her head in his palms while Elsie held a straw to her mouth, allowing her to take small sips of water.

"What happened?" Manoucheka asked, her voice restored by the cool water.

"There was an earthquake," Jim said softly, keeping his voice low in deference to the wicked headache she must have. Though she hadn't complained. Not once. Girl was a trooper. "It was a pretty big one."

"I felt the smaller ones, after, when I was lying there. I thought I would die when they happened," she said. Jim looked down at her, watching as she closed her beautiful brown eyes, moisture catching in her eyelashes. "My papa…he is dead."

Jim pursed his lips, glanced at Elise and Duncan. He wasn't going to lie to the girl.

"Yeah, he is. I'm sorry Manny," Jim replied. She kept her eyes closed, a tear tracked down the side of her face. She stayed quiet for a couple of minutes, then began whispering to herself. A prayer, Jim assumed. They stayed respectfully silent until she was done. When she opened her eyes again, they were sad, but they were clear.

"Where are we going?" she asked. "You are all Red Cross, wi? I saw your shirts."

"Yes," Jim said. "We've got a small facility not far from here. That's where we're headed, so we can get you fixed up."

"I cannot leave him there," she said, her voice wavering.

Duncan leaned over so she could see him. "'A course, Manny - I understand. I had to bury me own Ma when I was your age. If it's okay with you, I'll go with some people to bury him in the cemetery on the grounds. Yeah?"

"Thank you," she said. She closed her eyes then, and kept them closed for the rest of the ride. Jim gently stroked her forehead with his thumbs, keeping her head still and cradled in his hands. Jim met Duncan's eyes, conveying without words the respect he had for the man.

Jim wasn't search and rescue, Duncan certainly didn't have to recover Manny's father's body and give him a burial. None of that fell anywhere near what they were expected to do, as members of the International Red Cross. Food, shelter, medical help, to the best of their ability…that was what fell under their umbrella.

None of them, not even the straight-edged Elise, stayed under that umbrella though. That's what made them the best section to work with. Jim's group had already been in the country when the earthquake struck, focusing on vaccination and health education goals…and things went from routine to crisis mode in the space of a day...hell, in the space of 35 seconds…and his section hadn't skipped a beat.


	4. Chapter 4

**-Two Months Later-**

Jim fiddled with the radio, going up and down the dial. Mostly static, some bursts of angry male voices speaking quickly in the country's unique Creole language…too quickly for him to really catch any of it. Except for the anger. He heard that loud and clear. He cursed in disgust, finally just turning the radio off.

Two months, and things had hardly changed at all. People were starving and thirsty, and undergoing amputations by the hundreds because that was easier than dealing with the complications of a crushed limb, and there was so very little he and the rest of his group could do. It was maddening. They hadn't been prepared for a disaster of this magnitude. They didn't have the supplies, or the means to get the supplies out to those who needed it, except in their direct area. The people who knew them and were familiar with them kept coming, and when someone was really sick or hurt, they did what they could, but it wasn't long before their meager medical supplies were out, and they were down to what they had for themselves…the MREs to eat a small supply of bottled water and water purifying tablets.

"Where the fuck are the supplies, Elise?" Jim asked her as she came into the portable, carrying the last of the kid's clothing they had to give out. Jim was frustrated at his impotence in this situation, and that spilled over into undirected hostility hitting anyone within hearing range. Elise simply gave him a withering look, and he subsided with a sigh.

"Sitting on the tarmac at the airport," she answered coolly. "Waiting for some pompous official to pull his head out of his ass and sign the damn document."

Jim clenched his fists, pounding them on the table as he stood. This had been a problem from day one. Haiti, under the best of circumstances, had very little stable infrastructure. It was a government rife with corruption, and now…with the turmoil the country was in…it felt like things were at a standstill. It was an untenable situation, costing lives of people who had already been through so much and who deserved better than this. He had to do something…anything was better than simply sitting around waiting.

"Jim," Elise snapped. She'd been working with him long enough to recognize when the gears in his head were kicking in. "There's nothing we can do until IRC gets those supplies assigned to us released. We're not the only group here. The main part of the city is completely gone…the people there need the supplies more than we do."

"But they're not staying there!" Jim argued. This was the point he'd been trying to make to IRC headquarters, those coordinating distribution, over intermittent radio and cellphone signals. More and more people were leaving the city, moving into the slightly less-crowded countryside and suburban areas. New camps were being established as people tried to find somewhere to start over, and the population of the area Jim's group was in had seemed to nearly triple in just a few days. So, yes, absolutely the people in the city needed the help. But the people moving out here needed it too.

"Jim," Elise said again, her voice firm.

"I know," he sighed. "I just…we should be able to offer more than a band-aid."

"I understand," she said. Of course she did. They all felt the same way. That's why they were here. "We just have to hold on a little longer." She put a map of the area on the table in front of him. "I'm going to try to get a count in these two areas tomorrow…and keep vaccinating. The more the better, at this point. Come with me, okay?"

"Sure," Jim replied. Administering the polio vaccine would help curtail the spread of the potentially devastating disease that thrived in close-quartered living. It was so contagious that preventing an outbreak was important. Without any real cure, stopping the disease was a lot harder than preventing it. It was important work, and the reminder of that helped. He squeezed Elise's hand. "Thanks."

"Any time," she said. Jim left her to pull together the supplies she was planning on bringing out tomorrow and made his way to the small room he had to himself. He did have a roommate for a couple of days once. There was a kid who shared with him for a couple of nights before he'd opted to move in with Simon and Duncan, which had been fine with Jim. He hadn't had a lot of patience for kid, who, though seventeen, really wasn't here for the right reasons. To Jim's relief, he'd gone home as soon as he could after the earthquake struck, unable to handle the stress of the first few weeks, and really, no one had the time to babysit him. He'd really been too young, too immature, to handle something like this, and was only there in the first place because his big-donor parents wanted another thing for him to put on his college resume. So now he had the small space to himself again. Duncan and Simon still shared the other, and Manoucheka had been invited to share Elise's.

Jim was especially glad of the solitude now…he needed time to think. He couldn't just wait here. He didn't have Elise's patience or faith in the system. Not in a situation like this. Throwing himself down on his cot, he pulled an arm over his eyes and slowly began teasing out the first threads of a plan. It would take a little luck, and a lot of bullshit. It could get him tossed in prison (not terribly likely, given his IRC status) or killed (only slightly less likely, given the circumstances), but it also could work.

Red tape had plagued the relief efforts from the very beginning. The thing about tape, though, is that it's sticky no matter who you are. Time to put it to use.

Much later that night, Jim quietly eased out of the pitch-black portable. The generators were hardly ever on since the earthquake, in order to conserve fuel, and batteries were at a premium. Stopping in a shadowy alcove of the temporary facility created by a series of "pre-fab" fiberglass portable rooms connected by internal and external hallways, he finished dressing, trading his most comfortable and more customary hiking shoes for cleaner sneakers. He was dressed in his cleanest, most official white IRC collared shirt and khaki pants. He also had his name badge – the one with the RFID tag – on a lanyard around his neck, his vest with the unmistakable IRC logo in red on the back, and, for good measure, he slipped his glasses on. He hardly ever bothered with them…he could see fine without and it was so humid here most of the time they just steamed up and were more of a hindrance than a help.

But tonight, they were part of his look. He was in charge of his section, but he had to project that air of command a little further if his plan was going to work. Satisfied he'd done what he could to look the part, he turned…and just barely managed to clamp down on a scream that would've woken the dead.

"Where are you going?" Manny asked, looking up at him.

"God_damnit _Manny!" he wheezed. He bent at the waist, hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath. Only the fact that she was eighteen and still hardly more than a child kept him from cursing any more than that. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

"I will not make your heart attack you. But if you keep taking God's name in vain, He may lose his patience with you," she answered in a flippant tone but with a serious look. Jim straightened, glared at her for a second until she broke out in a beautiful smile, and he had to smile back, despite the fact that his heart was just settling back in place. She just had that effect on people.

"Sorry," he said. "I'll try not to say that again."

Satisfied, she nodded. "Where are you going?"

"Nowhere."

"You are dressed like an official person. Like a big-wig," she said, trying out the term she'd learned from Elise, probably. "Are you going into the city?"

"No, I'm not. I'm going on an errand. I'll be back later tonight. You should go back to bed. Now," he added, when she didn't seem inclined to move on her own.

Manny narrowed her eyes at Jim, looking up at him suspiciously. "Are you going to the airport, for supplies?" she asked.

Jim sighed. "Damnit Manny." She'd become so much of a fixture around their facility in the time she'd been there that often they spoke without really thinking of what she should hear and what she shouldn't. She was only eighteen, but she was older than that. She and her father had worked in the area, ministering to people any way they could, through their Church, through the outreach of meals and food and shelter, for so many years. It was a hard, lean lifestyle, but one she'd embraced with him, and it didn't turn off just because the Church building was destroyed, her father killed. Instead, it seemed to be her driving force now, and she'd simply taken a spot with their group, helping in any way she could once she'd recovered from the concussion she'd sustained. Now, with her hair slowly growing back – it had been shaved to suture the gash in her scalp – and her health restored, Manny was a point of light for Jim and the others in his group.

Of course, she could also be a pain in the ass.

"I want to come with you," she said.

"No."

Manny raised her head. "You need me, Jim."

He snorted. "Why would I need a short kid like you?" he asked, trying to tease some sense into her.

"Translator," she answered seriously.

He opened his mouth to retaliate, but closed it a second later. _Shit,_ he thought. She was right.

"It's dangerous, Manny. Especially for…" he waved his hand in her direction, and she nodded. She got it. It was dangerous for women and girls, out there, at night. Especially now. There were no police, there were no courts, and many bad men. Women were being attacked on a daily basis – and with no homes with no doors and no locks, there was very little protection.

But she wasn't afraid. People needed help. She could help Jim.

"I have short hair already. I'll dress like a boy. I'll be Manny," she said.

Jim looked down at her, thinking. She was so slight that a larger shirt would hide any physicality that would give her away as a girl, stick a hat on her head, have her lower her voice slightly when talking…it could work.

"Okay," he said slowly. "Rules…you stick right by me. Wear a polo, like mine – and pants, and sneakers. And a hat. Go get changed. I'm going to make you a name badge. Meet back here in ten minutes. Got it?"

"Got it," she said, her eyes were bright with excitement.

"Oh, and Manny," he said. She turned. He pointed at her. "If you wake Elise, you're staying here and you cover for me."

Jim had to forcefully shove away the misgivings he was feeling. Since they'd found her, he'd accepted her as his responsibility, and he did feel responsible for her. Though, he knew if Elise realized what he was doing, she'd likely kick his ass from here all the way back to the States.

They separated and set to their tasks. By the light of high-powered flashlight, Jim used some of the paper supplies and a label maker (_Thank you, Simon, for being such a neatfreak_) Jim made Manny a name tag, and nicked Elise's IRC windbreaker. Anything to make her look as non-descript as possible. She needed to fit in next to him, and to IRC aid workers trying to find their materials in the storage facility would be commonplace nowadays. Maybe not in the middle of the night…but he was going on the premise that security would be less careful. The less, the better.

Before leaving the office portable, Jim filled a document holding clipboard with a copy of the requisition forms that they'd submitted, blank forms, and a few other odds and ends. He wasn't sure what he was going to need, and he didn't want to get there wishing he had something he didn't. A few minutes later, satisfied that he was as prepared as he could be, he left the office portable, clicking off the flashlight and locking the door behind him.

One treacherous trip in a Red Cross ERV later, across the countryside, around the outskirt of the city on roads that were still somewhat torn up, and finally Toussaint L'Overture Airport was visible in the distance. Jim's grip tightened on the steering wheel. He was banking on lax security at this time of night…not necessarily less, in terms of people…and firepower…but less careful. Taking a calming breath, he again firmly pushed aside the list of everything that could go wrong. He had a huge advantage here. He'd press it as far as he safely could.

"Manny," he said, looking over at her. She pulled her attention from the window and gave it to him. "No matter what I say, don't contradict me. Understand me?"

"Yes."

"If anyone asks you about anything, you just say you're just in from Florida as a volunteer translator."

"What if they ask for my passport?"

"No one in the IRC carries their passport around," Jim said, and Manoucheka nodded. She turned back to the window, contemplating what they were about to do.

Jim hadn't spelled it out for her, but she wasn't stupid. They were going to see if any of the materials and supplies that were so desperately needed everywhere could be made available for them. It was stealing…kind of. These things were meant to be used by anyone who needed them, and everyone needed them just as badly as everyone else. Some of them were theirs anyway…just not released yet. Jim didn't want to wait. Walking around the tent camps that provided minimal cover for hundreds of people near them, hearing the babies cry, seeing the old people sick and hungry and hot, or shivering in the rain, watching the mothers try to feed the children and the angry young men trudge to and from the city….where nothing and nobody was working…it hurt her heart. People were suffering everywhere, and they couldn't help everyone…but maybe they could help some of them.

"God helps those who help themselves," Manoucheka whispered to herself. She hadn't really meant for Jim to hear her, but he did, and he smiled at her, his foreign and strange blue eyes bright even in the darkness.

"I'm counting on that, kiddo," he agreed.

At first, it was easy. Jim's RFID badge was barely glanced at, never mind scanned, and Jim was glad he'd brought the more official Emergency Response Vehicle as opposed to the pick-up. They were waved through the first two checkpoints by UN forces so used to the sight of response vehicles, no one thought to question them.

At the entrance to the hangar tarmac, the checkpoint was being manned by US soldiers, and this time his RFID tag was scanned, and his other form of identification – an Iowa driver's license – was examined as well. He was glad he'd thought to bring that. It was true that RCI workers didn't carry their passports around with them, but it was always recommended to have at least two forms of independent ID.

"Need your ID, too, sir," the soldier said, talking to Manny. She unclipped the ID badge Jim'd given her and he passed it to the guard.

"Secondary?" he asked.

"I didn't know to bring it," she said, consciously lowering her voice slightly.

"Manny's an area volunteer," Jim said. "Translating for us."

The guard seemed to consider that for a moment, but then handed it back over. "You guys are here a little late."

"Yeah, the roads are still crap," Jim said. "Took us a hell of lot longer than I thought, and I got lost trying to get here with all the detours, but I figured we could just sleep here if necessary."

The guard didn't answer, but stepped back in the booth. He hit the button to trigger the fence and stepped back up to the vehicle to give Jim directions.

"Have a good night gentlemen," the soldier said.

"Thank you," Jim said. He drove through, keeping his eyes ahead. Manny straightened up from her slouch and grinned at him.

"How was that?" she asked.

"Perfect," he said. "Academy Award-worthy." He paused, considering. "Do you know what that means?"

"Of course, Jim. Academy Awards. Hollywood movies…maybe I'll become an actress," she said.

Jim smiled. "Kiddo, you could probably pull it off, too. Okay…here we are. He pulled up to the staging building and turned the car off. Remember what I said, right? Don't contradict me."

They exited the car and headed to the building. Pulling open the door, he saw that there were a couple of men lounging at the desk, watching a snowy television set and talking quietly.

"Uh, excuse me, hello?" Jim said. They turned towards him, looking somewhere between suspicious and bored. "Uh, bonjour. Ou pale Angle?"

The men shook their heads and Manny stepped forward, introducing them. After some brief introductions and explanations from Jim facilitated by his translator, one of the workers got up to rifle through the order requisitions, trying to find the paperwork that matched his.

And this was the part that was going to need a little bit of finessing. Because technically, Jim didn't have the authority to sign out an order of anything. But he was counting on the guys on the night shift not realizing that. One of the guys, Gideon, said something about a "dokte," and they both laughed.

"What was that?" Jim asked. Manny looked puzzled, but turned to him to translate.

"They were kidding, but wanted to know if you would like to take the doctor who is here. They say he is always complaining."

"Why is there a doctor here?" Jim asked, looking up at Gerard. Manny translated, and there was a couple moments of conversation while she got the full story.

"He came in on a flight today with a special program for doctors, but there was a mix up because no one was here to meet him and no one could be reached. He is here overnight, and they hope gone tomorrow. Unless we take him tonight."

Jim took that in for a second, running the possibility through his head…the thought of another irascible doctor. Although highly improbably, it wasn't completely impossible. And wouldn't that be an…interesting…turn of events. Jim wasn't sure how he felt about it. _Whatever_, he thought. The possibility of it being him was small to none.

Turning back to the business at hand, which was going a lot smoother than he'd anticipated, Gerard and Gideon started going through the various palettes of supplies. They instructed Jim to pull the ERV around to a loading area where Gerard opened the bay door. Working together, they pulled materials and loaded the ERV. Mosquito nets, bags of rice and dried beans and packages of dried beef, boxes of water purification tablets, tarps, blankets, medical supplies including medications to combat malaria, boxes of bouillon cubes, biodegradable soaps…materials that would make a huge difference to a lot of people – it was amazing how much was just sitting there, waiting for a signature. It nearly made him physically ill. How could people allow this? People were _dying_ because they couldn't get clean water, and the means to make water safe for drinking for countless people was just sitting here.

Jim had driven the ERV here empty, and he would be leaving with it full…and still only have less than half of what they were supposed to get.

But even that was better than nothing, and he had no doubt he wouldn't have been able to pull this off during the day. The government officials in Haiti who were holding up the distribution of the materials being sent in from other countries were doing so in the public name of "fairness and accountability". What that translated to was everyone wanted to make sure the influential people responsible for their government appointments got help first, and got the final say in where materials would go…resulting in a traffic jam while all but the most fortunate suffered.

The thought of so much just sitting at the airport, waiting to be released to the people who needed it the most, was sickening. And while they worked, Jim got the very clear impression that Gerard and Gideon – brothers, it turned out – weren't quite as clueless to the proper procedure as they made themselves out to be. They didn't question Jim's messily scrawled signature that could've been his name, and just as easily might not have been. They didn't copy is ID tag. They handed his forms, and the copies they'd had, back to him, and allowed him to replace the original forms with new ones that were adjusted for the materials they were leaving with tonight. It seemed to Jim that they were just happy that at least some of the supplies were going to get out holding and to the people who needed them.

Before long, they were finished filling the ERV, Jim wondering if this was going to come back to bite him in the ass. They'd only taken what was on their lists, and it was going where it was supposed to go, but still, they were all breaking a lot of rules.

Caught up as he was in the excitement of getting at least this much to bring back, Jim couldn't find it within himself to worry too much about possible consequences. Pulling the door down on the ERV and locking it in place, Jim turned to the two men who'd helped him. "Merci," Jim said, shaking their hands. "Thank you."

Gideon replied to him and Manny translated, "Please make sure it gets where it needs to go."

She and Jim climbed back into the cab of the ERV, and Jim was about to turn the ignition, but paused, thinking. It might not be him. It probably wasn't. But it could be.

"Manny…I think I might be an idiot."

"Yes," she said.

"Yes?" He looked over at her, eyebrow raised.

She giggled and shrugged. "Elise thinks so."

"Hm. You're talking to Elise way too much." He sat in the car, hands on the steering wheel for another moment, contemplating the possibility. "Okay. We've gotta check. C'mon Manny."

"Check what?" she asked, following his lead and opening the door again, slipping out of the cab.

"The odds," he replied. She puzzled over that answer as she followed him back into the office of the storage facility.

"Manny – ask them about the doctor. Do they know his name?"

Manny and the brothers talked for a few moments, and Gerard stood, heading towards the back and up a flight of stairs.

"They don't remember his name…but he is sleeping here, upstairs," Manny said. "Gerard will get him."

"Thank you," Jim said, and Gideon nodded. He paced over to the window, looking out in the dark night. He was nervous. And he wasn't completely certain what outcome he hoped to have here. Manny took a seat beside where he stood, and he crossed his arms over his chest, glancing down at her with a tight smile. A few minutes went by, during which Jim replayed the couple of months before he'd left for his first deployment with IRC. Things hadn't been left on the best note, but they hadn't been awful either. He wondered what would happen…how they'd react to each other if…

"…what the damn hell is going on that you have to wake a person up…"

Jim sucked in a breath. He'd recognize that grumble anywhere.

He turned, and his eyes met those of the doctor as he froze in surprise on his way down the stairs.

"Hey Bones."


	5. Chapter 5

**Title:** The Defining Time  
**Author:** Caera1996  
**Rating: **R / NC-17  
**Disclaimer:** Not mine

.

"Hey Bones," Jim said lightly. He was happy with the way his voice stayed steady. He quirked a smile at the absolutely stunned expression on Leonard's face.

"Jim? What the…" A heartfelt expression of joy came replaced the shocked look, and Jim felt himself flush slightly at the idea that his presence was the cause of such intense feeling. After a second, Leonard was moving again, hurrying down the steps, his bare feet slapping against the hard concrete floor as he crossed to where Jim stood.

Before he realized what he was doing, Jim was coming forward to meet him, and suddenly Leonard had his arms around him again…and it felt like he'd never left. They hugged fiercely, and pulled apart much too soon, conscious of where they were, and the fact that they had an audience.

"I thought you might be here, but the IRC wouldn't say…"

"What the hell are you doing down here…"

They spoke at the same time, over each other, and paused at the same time, half-grins on their faces as they each processed the surprise of finding the other here. There was so much to say that they found themselves speechless, all of the words of the past year too crowded for any of them to make it out in this moment. Getting to her feet, feeling awkwardly like she'd somehow intruded on something private, Manny cleared her throat quietly behind Jim. He glanced over his shoulder at her, coming back to the situation at hand.

"Bones, man, you sleeping here?" Jim asked.

"Uh, yeah. The asshole who was supposed to bring me over never showed, and none of the worthless UN people could spare the time to bring me to the DWB set up," Leonard said. Jim nodded in understanding. Anything could've happened. Depending on where they were coming from, a blocked road could stop someone from making a meeting point. Bones, Jim knew, was new to Doctors Without Borders. When Jim had left, heading to South America for his first set of assignments with IRC, he was still deciding whether or not to join their ranks. It was one of the last things they argued about…Jim, back from his deployment with the U.S. Army, didn't feel like he could stay still, couldn't settle into a normal life, and needed to get out…to do something… and Bones just couldn't understand that.

"_Why am I not enough?" Leonard had asked, hurt and not understanding Jim's desire to leave again._

"_It's not that you're not enough," Jim said. "It's not that at all. It has nothing to do with you. I just…can't let life just pass by when I know there's so much going on, and I can help."_

_Leonard looked at him with compassionate eyes that made Jim need to look away. "You've done your part, Jim. You can't save everyone."_

"_I know that, Bones. Vividly. I've been in the middle of what happens when you can't save everyone. But I can make a difference for some people. And as long as I can, I feel like I have to. You're a doctor…don't you ever think about all those people who need a doctor and never see one? Why don't you try being there for them. Then you might get it."_

Bones had taken that suggestion to heart, it seemed, and now, here they were.

"Why don't you come back with us?" Jim suggested. "This is Manny, by the way. Manny, this is Leonard."

Leonard nodded a hello at the young man standing off to the side.

"I don't know, Jim…what if someone comes for me tomorrow?"

"We're in touch with the DWB group all the time. God knows we could use a doctor anyway. So we'll use the ham radio and let them know we have you…maybe get you to stay with us for a while."

Leonard stood with his hands on his hips, his eyes focused on the floor as he mulled Jim's offer over in his mind. Honestly, he would love that. He didn't care if he met up with DWB group at all if it meant being able to spend time with Jim, and he could still help people here anyway, no matter where he ended up. But…this was a lot…all of a sudden. And he wasn't sure were Jim really was in all of this.

"Are you sure, Jim?" he asked after a moment. And Jim knew he was asking on a more personal level this time.

"Yes," Jim replied, without hesitation – surprising himself. He hadn't realized until now just how much he wanted that. "Yes, very sure. Come back with us. You can meet the group."

Leonard looked at him for another second, wondering if he was hearing what he thought he was hearing…barely daring to hope. They hadn't spoken at all in a little more than a year. As much as he'd not wanted to believe it, Leonard had all but assumed their time together was over. But maybe…maybe not. Jim's eyes were always so expressive when he looked at him. That hadn't changed.

"Okay," Leonard said. "Yeah, thanks. Let me just go gather my things. Ten minutes, okay?"

"Sure," Jim said with a smile. "We'll be waiting in the truck."

Leonard turned and hurried back across the room, Jim watching with blatant interest as he climbed the stairs…the pajama bottoms he was wearing leaving not much to the imagination.

"Li pa telman pa bon. Bel bou," Manny said under her breath.

Surprised, Jim turned, giving her a look that made her laugh quietly. He didn't speak much Creole, but he'd picked up enough to recognize a couple of words, and he was pretty sure Manny had just commented on Leonard's ass.

"What?" she asked, painting an innocent expression on her face. Jim just rolled his eyes, waved goodbye to the brothers for the second time that night and pushed the door open, following her out.

"It's going to be a little crowded in here for the drive back, Manny," Jim said apologetically.

"That's okay," she said. "So he is a friend?"

Jim felt heat climbing up the back of his neck as he glanced at her – that hug would've suggested friendship at the _very_ least – and wondering if she was asking as innocently as she sounded. It was surprising, sometimes, the innuendos and pop culture references she knew about. Of course, they didn't know Manny well yet at all…just met her really…and for that first week, she'd been in their small infirmary, recovering from a concussion and other injuries she'd sustained in the earthquake. She played simple country missionary well, but more and more Jim was beginning to suspect that wasn't the whole story. They didn't pry, though. There was really no reason to. At the end of the day, Manny was still a young woman who'd recently lost her father, her home, and her life as she'd known it.

"Yeah, he's a friend. We haven't seen each other in a long time. It was a surprise to see him here."

"He will be staying with us?"

"Yeah. Maybe for a little while." _I hope._

He sighed and rested his head back against the headrest, tapping a rhythm out on the steering wheel. He happened to look up into his rearview mirror. He could see the guard gate where his RFID tag had been scanned. There was another vehicle there now. He watched as the soldier spoke to the driver, then appear to gesture in their general direction. Jim really hoped the attention wasn't really on them.

"Crap," he murmured. "Come on Bones…I don't want to wear out our welcome."

To his relief, Bones exited the building just then, a large duffel bag slung over his shoulder. Jim opened the door and stepped out onto the tarmac.

"Here, let's throw your bag in the back." He opened the door, and Leonard put it down on top of some boxes of supplies.

"Wow Jim…how did you get this stuff released?"

Jim shrugged. "I released it to myself," he replied.

Leonard looked at him for a moment. "Jim…did you steal these materials?"

"Of course not," Jim replied, his tone indignant. "All the requisition orders will match up. I only released about half of what should've come to us days ago, and they've got the new paperwork on it." Jim pulled the door closed, locking it in place. "You've not seen it yet Bones. It's…overwhelming. I couldn't let these supplies just be here when so many need them."

In the shadow of the truck, Leonard moved closer to him, hesitantly reaching out and gently rubbing his knuckles over Jim's cheek. He hadn't changed. He still wanted to save everyone. "It was daylight when I flew in. I saw from above…I can only imagine what it looks like on the ground."

"Well, you'll see soon enough," Jim said. Suddenly he felt very tired, and they still had a long drive back. "C'mon…let's get going."

"Okay, hey…what's up with Manny?"

Jim smiled. "Her name is Manoucheka. She had a church collapse on her, and we found her in the rubble. Her dad, the pastor, didn't make it. She doesn't have anyone else, and we've kinda adopted her. She's been working with us…tonight she came as a translator, but I thought it would be safer if it wasn't obvious she's a girl."

"Smart."

"Surprised?"

"About the smart idea? Yeah, a little," Leonard gently teased. "At the fact that you took her under your wing? Not at all."

Jim smiled a little, scuffed his toe on the ground, eyes averted in deference to the way the warm tone in Bones' voice was making him feel, unused to it after all this time, unsure of what to do with it. Leonard watched him with a fond amusement, reminded in that one instant why he'd found Jim so attractive when he first met him. Not just his looks, his intellect, or even his fierce loyalty…but his heart, his kindness, his real desire and want to make other people's lives better.

They shared that trait to an extent…Leonard became a doctor for the same reason…but Jim – Jim was different. To him, it was personal. Every victory – and especially every loss. And that was part of what had driven them apart.

"Yeah, well….c'mon. We better get going," Jim said. He glanced over his shoulder to the guard gate. The second car had come in and pulled off to the side…the driver and one of soldiers still conversing. Jim hoped there was no reason for him to know about what.

"Okay," he said, settling behind the wheel. Manny slid over to the center, sitting next to Jim, leaning a little further into him than necessary. He put it down to her wanting to give the stranger as much room as possible in the small space. She was looking a little shy, keeping her eyes focused on her hands in her lap. Want to put her at ease, Jim gently nudged her to get her attention. "Manny – why don't you tell Bones—"

"Manny, excuse me, Darlin'. Don't listen to him. My name is Leonard. You can call me Len, Leonard or Dr. McCoy, whatever you prefer. Only this fool calls me Bones," he said, reaching over to flick Jim on the back of his head.

Jim just waved him away, grinning, and picked up right where he left off. "—what the rule is here." He eyed the closed gate on the exit side of the guardhouse. If they asked to search the truck, there might be the need for some quick talking.

"Do not contradict what Jim says," Manny replied, glancing up at the newcomer before looking away again.

Leonard raised his eyebrows at that and looked over her head at the driver. "Jim…are you going to get us all thrown in prison?"

"Probably not all of us," Jim replied with a wink. Leonard scowled, and Jim felt a warm rush of familiarity over their banter. He slowed to a stop at the gate and rolled down his window. It was the same soldier he spoke to before. He eyed the passengers of the van.

"You been processed sir?" he asked Leonard.

"Yes, sir." He handed over his papers that identified him as a doctor working with the internationally recognized aid group and his U.S. passport that had been stamped upon his arrival while the airport was operational. For security reasons, it almost completely closed at night, and flights weren't allowed to take off or land after dark. The soldier examined Leonard's paperwork for a moment before handing them back over.

"You all be careful out there," the soldier said, stepping back and nodding to his partner in the gatehouse. He pressed a button and the gate opened, and Jim's grip on the steering wheel relaxed slightly. Passing through the gate, they headed back to the IRC facility, and Jim found he couldn't wipe the smile off his face. Exhausted though he was, he'd accomplished what he'd set out to do, and it had ended up better than he could've hoped for, in more ways than one. He still could hardly believe that it had been a year and 3,000 miles – and they still managed to find each other.

It was mostly quiet on the way back. A little past one in the morning, Manoucheka was dozing, leaning against Jim's side, his right arm around her. Leonard was glued to the passenger side window, taking in the condition of the roads and neighborhoods at ground-level for the first time. It was difficult to see in the dark, but the light of the moon and the light of fires created for warmth and light by the individuals and families gathered around made it possible for him to get a good look. It was hard for Leonard to wrap his head around the idea that the quake that had caused all of this destruction had happened two months ago. Not nearly as well-traveled or worldly as Jim, Leonard intellectually understood the concept of a small country like Haiti, but actually seeing what that meant – a lack of working government, little to no infrastructure to respond to the needs of the people in a crisis situation, a population basically left to live or die on its own devices – it wasn't anything like he'd ever seen or experienced.

When they were through the city and Jim was carefully negotiating the narrow dirt roads through the darkness on their way back to the IRC facility, Leonard turned his attention from the surroundings to him, studying his profile, trying to sort through all of feelings that had rushed him – that he'd been so completely unprepared for. He really just couldn't wait to be alone with him, to talk, to reconnect. He wanted that more than almost anything else.

Jim nudged Manoucheka awake as they pulled up to the gate. She sat up and wiped a hand over her eyes as Jim slipped out of the vehicle to unlock and open the fence. Leonard switched sides and drove the van through, pulling to a stop to wait for Jim to join them after locking the fence closed. He directed Leonard to pull up to the side of the building and they parked.

"Are we unpacking the truck tonight?" Manny asked. Jim stretched, closed the door to cab and locked it.

"Hell no," Jim said. "You're exhausted, I'm exhausted. I'll bet Bones is exhausted…no, it's bedtime, kiddo. We'll get Simon, Duncan and Elise to store everything tomorrow."

"Okay, Jim," Manny said. She caught a yawn behind her hand and wrapped her arms around herself, waiting for Jim to unlock the entrance. They all slipped inside, and Jim closed and locked the door behind them. They waited in almost complete darkness while Jim moved across the room by memory and feel to pull a flashlight off the shelf. He clicked it on and used it to illuminate their way.

Together, they quietly moved through the connected portables, making their way to where everyone slept. Outside of Elise's door, Jim gave Manny a hug.

"Thank you for your help, tonight, Manoucheka," he said in a hushed voice. "There's no way that would've gone as easily as it did without you."

"You are welcome, Jim. I am just glad I could help."

"It was nice to meet you Manny," Leonard said. "Thanks for keeping this knucklehead out of trouble."

"It was nice to meet you too, Doctor," she said, her accent a little thicker because she was so tired. "See you in the morning."

Using the key she wore around her neck, she opened the door as silently as she could and slipped into the room she shared with Elise. Jim waited until he heard the lock turn, and then he led Bones down to where he slept.

Jim led him in, snapping on a small, battery-powered camping lamp on a bedside table. Leonard looked around as Jim turned on another lamp, and between that and the window with the open shades letting in the shine from the nearly full moon, it was actually bright enough to see pretty clearly. It was small space, and plain. There were two beds, one wall lined with shelves for storage, and a desk. There was also a trunk pushed against one of the walls, and Leonard recognized it as Jim's. He'd used the same one for years.

"Home sweet home," Jim said, sitting on one of the beds and pulling his shoes off. "Make yourself comfortable."

"You have a roommate?" Leonard asked, gesturing to the bed.

"Nope, I've never really had a roommate. One of the perks of being the guy in charge."

"Really?"

Jim smiled, shook his head. "Nah. It's just worked out that way. If we had another person, they'd be welcome to sleep in here."

Leonard dropped his duffle and sat on the bed, happily surprised that it seemed more comfortable than he thought it was going to be. He eyed Jim speculatively, watching as he stretched tiredly, scrubbing a hand through his hair, and wondering what was going through his mind right now. Jim sat on his bed and pulled off his sneakers and socks, and for lack of anything else to do, Leonard followed his lead. The silence in the room wasn't all that comfortable at the moment, and he supposed there were two things he could do with it. He could take Jim's invitation to come and sleep here and visit with his IRC colleagues at face value, change into his pajamas, and get to sleep – he really was tired. Or, he could take a bit of a chance, take the first step, and see if what he thought – what he hoped – he heard and saw in Jim earlier was still there.

"Thanks for inviting me back here, Jim," he said. "It's really…" he stopped, shaking his head. "Seeing you there…all of a sudden like that. I felt like…I don't know…"

Jim looked up at him, hearing the uncertainty in his voice and meeting his eyes across the short distance. "Like we were looking at a second chance," Jim finished. He watched as Bones ran a hand through his hair, making his bangs fall across his forehead. Jim swallowed, feeling a rush of familiarity that was almost dizzying. He'd always liked Bones' hair like that. He liked when he was the one to make his hair like that.

"Is that what this is, Jim?" Leonard asked quietly. "Is it another chance?"

Jim considered that for a moment, fiddling with the edge of the blanket. Was that what he wanted? He thought so.

They'd been apart for a year, but before that, they'd been friends. Good friends. And that friendship had started to develop into something more…passion and a love for each other that was based in the foundation of friendship. And though those feelings had been there for a while, it was something they had just begun to explore. Leonard made it clear from the beginning that it could be something permanent for him, but Jim couldn't settle.

He'd shared with Leonard some of what he'd experienced on his deployment, and because of that had been incredibly supportive as he tried to adjust to a normal life again. But before long, Jim realized he couldn't do it. After seeing so much suffering that he couldn't do anything about – the innocents who suffered, caught in the middle of warring ideologies and governments when all they wanted was to be able to walk to school without the threat of being blown up – Jim had an irrepressible need to do what he could to help in any way he could. So he joined the International Red Cross, an organization that could operate almost anywhere because of their strict policy of neutrality, no matter the situation.

"Is that what you want, Bones? Am I worth the risk of another chance?" Jim asked, genuinely curious. He looked up, meeting Bones' eyes. "I walked away from you before."

Leonard sighed, and after another moment, moved to sit next to Jim on his bed. "Well, that's not quite how I remember it," he said quietly, letting himself lean against Jim's shoulder. "If I recall, you were heading out on your first set of IRC assignments, but the goodbye didn't feel permanent to me. I'm not gonna lie, Jim. It hurt, and I missed you. I never stopped missing you. But, I know you. And it didn't take me long to realize that this was something you needed to do. I knew what I wanted, but I think I was a little pushy. And…you weren't ready."

He paused, and after a moment took one of Jim's hands, rubbing his thumb over the back of it. "Am I wrong?"

Jim swallowed, flushing slightly under Bones' intense gaze. "No," he said after a moment, his eyes on their hands. "You're not wrong. And…I wasn't ready. But…I think I am now."

Leonard quirked a smile, his eyes traveling over Jim's face, taking in every not-forgotten detail, and learning a few new ones.

"Yeah?" Leonard asked, his voice low, leaning closer to him. Jim's warmth and scent were so inviting and he'd missed Jim for so long.

"Yeah," Jim confirmed, closing the inches between them and leaning in to Bones' solid figure, catching his lips in a kiss that did more to erase that year that separated them than anything either of them could say.

Losing himself in the wonderful familiarity of Bones, in his feel and taste and essence, Jim closed his eyes as Bones wound an arm around him, drawing him close. Turning more towards each other, Jim let his hand wander from Leonard's thigh up his torso then around his shoulders, squeezing him and wrapping his arms around him. The kiss was gentle and passionate and everything they remembered, the connection they'd shared before reforming in just seconds.

Eventually the need for air ended their kiss. Resting their foreheads together, they caught their breath, and then Leonard pressed another kiss to Jim's lips, bringing a hand up to gently cup his face, tracing the curve of the shell of his ear. Jim kept his eyes closed, the rush of emotions making him feel oddly exposed – not something he was used to or comfortable with after so long.

"You asked if you were worth it. Worth the risk of another chance," Leonard said. "You are Jim. You are to me. I hope you think I am too."

Jim opened his eyes, the blue as expressive as ever, and Leonard held his breath until Jim smiled, kissing him again and holding him tightly. "Yeah, I think we can work something out," he said lightly. Leonard chuckled.

They held each other's gaze for a moment more before Jim pulled away, standing to stretch.

"C'mon…I'm starving. Let's get changed and then go raid the pantry, so to speak. We have a lot of catching up to do," he said. Leonard looked at him in surprise, nearly ready to remind Jim what time it was, but after a moment, thought, _What the hell._

This was their one more chance. He wasn't going to waste it in any way. Jim excused himself to the shared bathroom to wash up a little, and they both changed into comfortable, cool pajamas. The "pantry" Jim had referred to was a secret stash of some of his favorite snack foods on one of the top shelves in a nondescript box. They fished around for their choices, and then Jim surprised Leonard by offering him a cool soda or water from a cooler under his bed.

"Where'd you get the ice?" Leonard asked, gratefully taking a water. He sat crosslegged on his bed as he munched on a bag of Combos. They'd turned off one of the lamps and left the other on the table between the two beds. He felt like a kid at a slumber party, and he was completely okay with that. In the dim lighting, Jim looked even younger than he was, and Leonard couldn't believe the luck that happened to bring them together again this night.

"We had a whole bunch of ice made and stored in the freezer. Because we run the generators for a few hours each day, it hasn't had the chance to completely melt," Jim explained.

"How long have you guys been without electricity?"

"We're without by choice. We have two generators, we're just really trying to conserve the fuel. Simon – one of my teammates here, you'll meet him tomorrow – handles logistics. If you have an hour, he'll tell you all about in. In excruciatingly minute detail."

"Hm…thanks for the offer. I probably won't take it." He smiled as Jim chucked. They sat in silence for a moment, Leonard looking at Jim speculatively. "What's it been like here? After the quake and all?" Leonard asked quietly.

Jim hesitated for a moment, rolling a can of soda that he'd been saving for months between his palms, trying to think of a way to adequately explain what those first few hours and days had been like, and how it compared to what it's been like since. The things he'd seen and heard – the indignity of mass graves that had become a necessity, children and adults with amputated limbs crying out in pain, people actually living on the narrow medians of the city streets – it was practically indescribable.

"It was bad, Bones. Really bad," Jim said quietly. "It was like…a bomb was dropped, with all the force and destruction and none of the fire. It could've been an actual warzone. And in some areas, for a while, it was."

Leonard managed to not flinch, but he wondered what kind of an effect being in the middle of such destruction and carnage again had on Jim. The nightmares he'd been victim of when he first got back from his Army deployment had finally started to abate by the time he was ready to head out on his first IRC assignments. It broke Leonard's heart to think that Jim had maybe suffered those terrifying nightmares, reliving things he couldn't have helped and couldn't change in his sleep, without someone there to wake him and turn on the light and remind him that it was over.

He didn't ask that, though. There were so many things he wanted to ask, and he didn't know how. He didn't know if there were things that were off the table, like when he'd returned from overseas. He didn't know if Jim would still see concern as an intrusion.

"You were already here?"

"Yeah. E & V program," Jim replied, referring to the health education and polio vaccinations they'd been engaged in before the quake.

Bones nodded. "So how do you like being a part of the International Red Cross?"

The conversation flowed more easily after that. They filled each other in about what had taken place in their lives over the last year and it struck Jim, while they were talking, just how much he had missed him. Bones had taken a special place in Jim's life, given him a security and stability he hadn't had since he was a child. But he hadn't realized how much that had mattered until he didn't have it any more. They talked until the sun was just about ready to rise, until Jim felt like there wasn't much else to say. Holding his pillow against his chest, he found himself just staring at Bones, thinking about the kiss they'd shared earlier.

"Bones, I – " He hesitated, trying to fill in the rest of the sentence that seemed to just start without him. He what? He was sorry? He missed him? "I took you for granted," he said, finally. Making himself look up and make eye contact, he continued: "And…I just wanted you to know that I'm sorry for that. I didn't realize how important to me you were, until you weren't a part of my life anymore. And now that you're back…I don't want to let you go again."

Leonard felt his heart skip a beat or two at Jim's confession. That Jim might feel the same way he did was something he'd never quite given up on. Not just friendship or loyalty to each other, but that something more they'd had before…that it was still present between them now. Even when Jim felt like he had to leave, he'd tried to comfort himself with the idea that Jim wasn't leaving _him_, though he was never quite sure he believed that. And this…it was what he'd been hoping with all his heart to hear.

And now, after a year of waiting and hoping, and never expecting it would happen like this, Leonard found he had no words. But Jim heard him anyway.

Getting up from his bed, he crossed the short expanse between them and joined Leonard in his. Moving to make room for him, Jim wrapped his arms around him tightly and guided them to lie down. Fitting together as perfectly as if they'd been made that way, Leonard held on to Jim, pressing his face to his neck.

"You have no idea how much that means to me, Darlin,'"Leonard said, his voice rough with emotion as he wrapped Jim in his arms. Jim held him tighter, pressing a kiss to the crown of his head.

"I'm so sorry I hurt you," he said. "I never meant to."

"I know," Leonard replied. "I know."

Sharing the small bed, trading kisses and tender touches, they reluctantly gave themselves over to the pull of sleep, just as the sun was starting to peak over the horizon.


	6. Chapter 6

**Title:** The Defining Time  
**Author:** Caera1996  
**Rating: **R / NC-17  
**Disclaimer:** Not mine

**This Part:** Two Months Later, Part c/c

* * *

Hours later, Jim woke slowly. At first, all his sleepy brain registered was that he and Bones had fallen asleep together, and had apparently not moved much during the night. His limbs were stiff and his side actually ached a little from being in the same position for so long. As he became more aware of his surroundings, he realized that it was actually uncomfortably warm in the little room, even though both windows were open, to allow for a cross-breeze in the night that kept the space comfortably cool. Judging by how warm it was now, Jim guessed it was probably close to noon.

He smiled to himself, wondering if Manny had given Elise the complete story about the full ERV parked outside and their new "member", or if she was feigning innocent to cover for him, waiting for him to wake up and tell the story himself. He hadn't given Manny any direction figuring it wouldn't matter. The fact that it was obviously late in the day and no one had come pounding on his door to rouse him suggested that at least the part about Leonard had been told one way or the other.

Bones was still breathing slowly and evenly, pressed up against his back, his arm possessively around his waist and one of his legs was thrown over his as well. Jim shifted slightly, but he was well and truly pinned. Shifting again, he felt Leonard's arm tighten around him as he inhaled deeply, slowly waking as well.

Jim turned slightly to look over his shoulder with a smile. "Morning," he said.

"Mornin'," Leonard released him and rolled away slightly, putting some distance between their bodies. "It's hot," he said, tugging the sheet off and flinging it off his body.

Jim nodded. "It's probably around noon….but I bet the generator is on."

"So? You got A/C in here?" Leonard asked.

"Nope…but I do have a fan."

Pushing himself up, he moved the standing fan that was closer to his empty bed and plugged it in…and sighed in relief as it turned on, creating a little bit of a breeze.

"Oh, that's good," Leonard said, closing his eyes as his hair ruffled in the blowing air. Jim smiled, the sight of Bones spread out on his bed doing a lot to pique his already-present interest. He crawled back onto the bed, holding himself over Bones' body on his hands and knees as he stared down into his eyes. Leonard quirked an eyebrow as he looked up at him, waiting to see what he was going to do. They'd both been too tired and too…something. New to each other again?...to do anything but hold each other and kiss and reconnect with tender touches last night.

But Jim was feeling more bold, more comfortable, now. He leaned down to kiss him, gently brushing his lips across Bones'. Leonard reached up and ran his hands up Jim's sides, smiling when he squirmed with ticklishness, and across his strong back. He pressed, urging Jim down.

Settling his body against Bones', Jim turned his head to rest on Bones' shoulder as he settled on the firm body beneath him. He slid his arms under Bones' shoulders, wanting the contact, the connection, with him despite the heat. Bones responded in kind, seeming to understand exactly what Jim needed without making him say it, and held him tightly, gently drawing his hands up and down the center of his back over his t-shirt. They lay like that, holding each other, for a few minutes. Jim closed his eyes, reveling in the feel of everything about Bones. His breath hitting Jim's hair as he exhaled, the rise and fall of his chest, syncing up with Jim's own, the strength of the arms holding Jim…and his arousal, matching Jim's own as they lay pressed together.

He flushed slightly, realizing that Bones could feel how aroused he was as easily as Jim could feel Bones. But Bones wasn't saying anything about it, and Jim knew he wouldn't. If there was going to be another step taken, Jim would be the one to take it. After a couple of minutes, feeling secure in Bones' arms, he gave in. Shifting slightly, he arranged his legs so that he was on his knees on the outside of Bones' arms. He began to move, gently rubbing himself over Bones, and raising his head to kiss him, slow and deep, their tongues pressing together in an echo of movement. Bones groaned, arching slightly under Jim's weight, wanting the friction and the pressure. Jim bit his lip at the feel of it and pressed down harder, moving against him. Bones slid his hands down Jim's back to his ass, holding him tightly and pulling him against him harder. They kissed, moved against each other, the friction against sensitive flesh making them want more.

Gasping, sweaty, Bones groaned when Jim reached a hand between them, palming his hard length over the fabric of the pajama pants. He felt Bones shudder as he stroked, gently massaging him with strong fingers. Not to be outdone, Leonard slipped his hand into Jim's pants, and the feel of skin on skin contact, the feel of Bones' large, warm hand closing around him, was enough to make Jim want to cry out. He clenched his teeth, the expression on his face looking almost pained at the intense sensations rushing through him.

Wanting to feel Bones in the same way, Jim tugged at his pants, pulling them down around his hips. Jim palmed his balls, and stroked his fingers over the sensitive skin behind them, then gently closed his fist around Bones' length. He thrust into Jim's grip, moaning at the feel of it.

"Shh," Jim said, kissing Bones' neck, tonguing that sensitive spot he remembered always drove him crazy. "These walls are paper-thin."

Bones pressed up, arching again. "Oh, god, now you tell me," he said, gripping the edge of the thin mattress as he tried to deal with the tension and heat coiling within him. Jim chuckled as they shifted, urging Jim to the side so that they lay face to face, and continued stroking each other, kissing, moaning quietly as they pushed each other to completion. Breathing hard, muscles shaking with tension, Bones clenched his teeth as his orgasm crashed over him. The sight of Bones going rigid, his face a mask of exquisite pleasure, was enough to bring Jim to completion right after him. Bucking against each other, stroking continuously through the each pulsing spurt of come, Jim pressed his face against Bones' shoulder, muffling a shout against him, completely overwhelmed.

Tangled together, sweat and other fluids dampening their clothing and skin, their bodies slowly relaxed as their chests heaved with exertion. His eyes closed, face still pressed to Bones' neck, Jim reached up and drew his hand through Bones' hair, squeezing gently at the back of his neck. Bones responded with a small sound at the back of his throat, not trusting himself to speak just yet. Jim pressed himself up, eyes traveling over Bones' face, and he leaned in to kiss him again…slow and deep and passionate. Bones opened to him, holding him, still barely able to believe there were here like this again, that he had Jim in this way.

"I love you," Jim murmured, so lowly that if he hadn't said it against his ear, he wouldn't have heard him. He did though, and his heart soared. That Jim not only felt it, but was able to say it…it was more than he could've hoped for.

"I love you, too," Bones replied. "I never stopped."

Jim shook his head slightly, unable to understand what he'd done to deserve to have Bones in his life so unconditionally. It'd been like that since the beginning of their relationship. Even when Jim was at his lowest and didn't think he'd deserved anything, especially someone like Bones, he'd just say it again and again…that Jim did deserve to have someone who cared about him, that he was good enough, and that he didn't have to be alone.

After this year, though, after seeing so much and seeing that love for each other was always one thing that always held people together, even in the worst conditions, Jim made the decision to accept it for himself to. To believe Bones and to let himself have what Bones always said he deserved. And, as if he'd needed any other convincing, to find Bones now, here, would've done it.

It was more than Jim believed he deserved. But he was getting there.

Eventually they got up and took turns cleaning up in the small bathroom. Jim stripped off the sheets of the bed they'd slept in, intending to wash them at some point, but just balling them up and throwing them in the corner for now.

It was quiet inside the facility, and Jim was pretty sure everyone was outside, handing out materials, vaccinating, helping those who'd settled in the area with setting up pins for their goats and chickens…basically going about what daily life was now.

Jim grabbed a couple of MREs for them to eat and supplemented it with a couple pieces of fruit. While they were eating, the door opened and Elise entered carrying a clipboard of what Jim was sure was an inventory sheet. Swallowing, Jim smiled hugely as Elise narrowed her eyes at him.

"Jim," she said.

"Elise – meet Bones," he said.

Leonard stood, offering her his hand. "It's Leonard, ma'am. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Elise shook his hand and smiled a quick hello before returning her attention to Jim. "Jim," she said again. "What did you do? Am I going to have to explain missing inventory to HQ?"

"Of course not Elise. Trust me on this, we have a little less than half of what we're supposed to get, and as long as no one takes what isn't theirs from what's left, everything will match up in the end." He held her hard gaze for another second before looking down, his expression becoming more serious. "I just couldn't sit here and do nothing, Elise. Just…trust me, okay?"

She seemed to consider it for another moment, then sat down with a sigh. "Fine," she said. "But if I get a call, I'm handing the phone to you."

"Understood," Jim said. "Guess what else we got when we were there?" He gestured to Leonard, who was watching them quietly. "A _doctor._"

After they'd finished eating and chatting with Elise, Jim led Leonard outside and down the path to the tent city, his doctor's bag in hand. Since Manny had joined them, Jim's group had taken to splitting into two groups, one with Elise and the other with Manny since they both spoke Creole, moving from tent to tent and from person to person, checking to see how people were doing, what they needed, if they were getting enough food, or if they were using the water purification tablets properly. Because of the lack of sanitary facilities, cholera was starting to become a problem, and although not usually deadly to people in otherwise good health, it was a miserable illness that did have the potential to kill victims by dehydration. Clean water and good hygiene practices could easily curb the disease, but neither of those things were particularly easy to ensure right now.

Jim led Bones through the maze of temporary shelters that had become permanent for so many over the last few weeks, waving to people who recognized him, checking in, with his limited Creole, on mothers and fathers with young infants and children. This was Bones' first time in a situation like this, and Jim could see he was overwhelmed with everything…the conditions, the health issues, the way injuries were treated…it was so different from what he was used to. But to his credit, he simply did what he could. They managed to meet up with Manny at one particular tent that housed a family of six…a mother with three children and her elderly parents. Her husband had not made it out of the hotel he'd been working in when the quake struck and their house was just gone. She'd salvaged everything they could, and decided she needed to get them out of the city. So here they were, making the best of an impossible situation…treating it like an adventure for the sake of her kids, too young to completely understand why their father wasn't there, and keeping a lid on her pain and mourning in order to focus on the good of her family. She, and so many like here, displayed a personal strength that Jim deeply respected.

When they arrived, the children were shy at first, staying behind their grandparents, until the oldest – a little boy of about five – ventured forward, pulled by his own curiosity and the friendly smiles of the people who were visiting.

Bones wanted to listen to their chests, and he demonstrated on Manny first while she explained to the children what he was hearing. Then the kids all wanted a turn to hear, exclaiming in surprise as they listened to the hearts of their mother and grandparents with his stethoscope. While Bones worked, Manny asked the mom what she really needed. They were doing okay with food, having banned together with other families to keep their families fed, and Jim promised to bring back some mosquito nets, blankets and a tarp to give the family better cover from the elements.

The rest of the day passed in the same manner, and Leonard found himself again and again impressed with Jim's compassion and sincerity. The people he worked with responded to that, and they were open with him, inviting them into their living spaces, letting their little ones interact with them, allowing Jim to comfort them as they shared their grief over people they'd lost. Leonard could see why this work appealed to him, difficult though it was. He'd been very conflicted over some of what he'd been ordered to do when he was overseas, but he'd had to follow orders. Here, though how he could help was limited simply by what he had at his disposal, none of his actions directly or indirectly caused any of this. He was here only to help, to make people's lives better, as much as he could. Yeah, Leonard could understand that.

In a quiet moment at the end of the day they sat together resting. "How are you holding up?" Jim asked Bones. Very few people knew what to expect when coming in to a situation like this for the first time, and it really couldn't get any different from a cushy job in a big city in California or Georgia – the extent of Leonard's medical practicing so far.

"I'm fine," he said. "It's…you were right…it's hard to put it into words. It's hard to imagine that just a few hundred miles across the Caribbean Sea is the United States. I just don't understand how this could happen here."

"I understand," Jim said quietly. "I feel that way at every new location. It never gets any easier. You just…do what you can do."

"It just doesn't feel like it could ever be enough," Leonard said quietly. He leaned against Jim's side as they sat at the base of the tree, watching as the sun set. Jim had led him up to the top of a hill – his favorite spot – where they could watch the sun sink into the ocean.

"It never does," Jim said. He sighed, resting his cheek against the top of Leonard's head, closing his eyes for a moment. "You manage to get hold of your peeps at DWB?"

Leonard huffed a laugh and rolled his eyes. "My 'peeps', Jim? Seriously? Yeah, I did."

"And?"

"And I can't stay here for the whole time. They need a surgeon down at the main medical center, and I'm it."

Jim was silent for a moment, disappointment thick in his chest. He'd really been hoping they could spend more time together. But he couldn't say he was surprised. Bones was there for a reason, and they were expecting him.

"Well, at least we're in the same country now. We can see each other every now and then," Jim said lightly, trying to mitigate the news with a silver lining. "I'll drive you down myself tomorrow."

"Doesn't have to be tomorrow," Leonard said. "I explained that there hadn't been a doctor up here with this group at all, and the director gave me the okay to stay until the end of the week."

"That's great! Maybe after your stint is done, you can apply for an extension to be in the country and stay with us for a while."

Leonard nodded, that possibility having already crossed his mind. He was fortunate that he had his own practice and the means to pretty much do what he wanted. He could take extra time and stay here with Jim fairly easily. But that was for now. He wanted more than just now.

"And what about after that, Jim?" Leonard asked quietly. "Is it just going to be assignment after assignment, going where needed, never stopping or settling?"

Jim was silent for a moment. This is exactly where they'd split up last time…his answer to the question being 'yes', and Bones' being 'no'. But that was a long time ago. They were both different people now.

"Is that such a bad way to live?" Jim asked. "Visiting new places, putting the lives of others first?"

"Not a bad way to live Jim, not at all."

"Could you do it?"

That was the question, wasn't it? A year ago, the answer was "no". But that was before he realized how much Jim meant to him. He wasn't willing to lose him again.

"I'd do it for you," Leonard answered honestly. Jim held him tightly, sighing.

"We'll work something out, Bones. Maybe split the time we spend traveling with time at home. I want you, and I want you to be happy. So we'll work it out."

Leonard turned, looking into Jim's eyes and seeing the promise there, and realizing that Jim's feelings for him were the same – he'd do it for Leonard. He smiled at Jim, reaching an arm up and winding it around Jim's neck, pulling him down for a kiss. "Thank you," he said sincerely. "You have no idea how much it means to me to hear you say that."

Jim's eyes turned a little sad. "I was being selfish before, but I was doing what I needed to do at the time. It'll be different this time, I promise."

"I know," Leonard replied quickly. "I know. And I can't wait to see what's going to come for us, Jim."

The next few days passed fairly quickly, staying busy with the more than 400 people who'd moved into the area, desperate to get out of the city and away from the destruction and memories. They spent their nights together, sharing a bed, learning and sharing each other, and before they knew it, they were down to two more days before Leonard had to go down to the city.

That morning, they were sitting with Simon and Duncan, eating a quick breakfast of oatmeal and fruit.

"Hey guys," Elise said, coming in to the common room.

"Hey beautiful," Jim said. "You're out there early. What's up?"

"Got a call from one of the other units on the east side of the city. They're dealing with an outbreak of measles and are short-handed. They asked for extra hands for the next couple of days – until the relief workers they're expecting get in."

"Oh, yeah?" Jim asked. He looked over at Leonard. "Wanna go? We can drive over there, spend a couple of days helping out, and then I'll drive you down to the DWB facility in the city before coming here. What do you think?"

Leonard shrugged. "Works for me," he said.

Jim looked over at Elise. "That okay with you?"

"You mean I get a break from you?" she teased. "Absolutely."

That settled, as soon as they were done eating, Leonard and Jim packed up their things – Leonard taking everything and Jim taking enough for a couple of days. As they were pulling their stuff together, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in!" Jim said. He looked up and smiled at the young woman who entered. "Manny! How are ya, kiddo?"

"I'm fine. I heard from Elise you were leaving to visit another area," she said.

Leonard glanced between the two of them. He'd talked to Jim about the PTSD Manoucheka was undoubtedly suffering from, and the way she'd attached herself to him. Since her father had died, she was alone, and Jim and this group had become her safety. Leonard was concerned for her, for what would happen when they left, especially since no one was doing anything to mitigate her connection to them.

"_I've thought about it, Bones. And I do feel responsible for her. To be honest, I've started looking into bringing her back to the States with us…maybe getting her a student visa and getting her accepted to one of those special magnet programs. She's a smart girl, Bones. She could earn a GED, get into a community college, and make a life for herself." He'd paused, looking away for a second. "She doesn't have anyone. I know what that's like."_

Leonard let it go then. He wasn't sure how that was all going to work out, but knowing that Jim was aware of Manoucheka's situation reassured him. He had no doubt that Jim would do whatever it took to make sure that she was taken care of – that they weren't just going to leave her when it was time to go.

"That's the plan," Jim replied. "I'll be gone a couple of days."

"I would like to come, too," Manoucheka said shyly.

Jim straightened, giving the girl a careful look. "You don't want to stay here with Elise? She told me about that great idea you had for doing a community meal. Don't you want to work on that?"

"I do, but…I'd like to go with you. You need help, too, no? A translator?"

Jim considered for a moment, realizing that Bones was right…Manny had gotten very attached to him, moreso than the others in his group. That was something that they did need to work on. It was on the tip of his tongue to gently decline and make it clear that she needed to stay here, but one look at her deep brown eyes, the look she was giving him, and he caved.

"Alright, sure," he said. He pulled an empty duffle bag from under his bed. "Go get packed…bring enough for a couple of days." Leonard rolled his eyes and shook his head in amusement. Jim was such a softie.

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Jim? Her coming with us?" Leonard asked.

Jim looked up from stuffing another pair of pants into his bag. "Yeah, why not?"

"An outbreak of measles, Jim. That's nothing to fool around with. Has she been vaccinated?"

Jim nodded. "Yes. She was able to show me vaccination records her father kept when we went back to the church and their house to save what we could. She was able to get the documents her father had kept, and her vaccination records were in there. Apparently, she went to a UN sponsored school that made sure its students followed the international standards."

Reassured that they weren't bringing an unprotected person into a hot zone, he turned back to his own packing.

Minutes later, they were loading their bags into the back of the pick-up truck, along with some provisions of supplies the other group had been lacking that Simon and Duncan had secured in the back.

"So, it'll probably take about three hours to get there. The roads should be cleared, but who really knows. This map," Elise said, handing it to Jim. "Should have all the backroads shown, in case you need to do a detour."

"Great, thanks," Jim said as he studied it.

"You got your ID?"

"Of course."

Elise pursed her lips, unhappy with the idea of Manoucheka going with them. "She should stay here."

Jim looked up at her. "We'll be fine. I haven't heard of any problems in weeks."

"They didn't just disappear, Jim."

When the earthquake struck, the main prison had been destroyed. A lot of inmates were killed, and a lot of inmates got away. With the state of emergency the earthquake had caused, recapturing the escapees just wasn't on the top of anyone's list. And aside from that, these were desperate times for a lot of people, and that changed things. It'd happened a few times…rescue personnel being hijacked, their materials stolen. For the most part, they weren't killing people – unless they resisted – but there had been some injuries, and there was one Swedish aid worker who was still missing. It was a danger that aid workers everywhere had to deal with. Of course, there were countries with higher risk than others…some areas of Africa, the Middle East, certain areas of South America…they were all considered high-risk assignments. Haiti generally wasn't, but recent events had changed things everywhere.

"I won't stop for anything, and we'll radio as soon as we get there. We'll be okay."

Elise held his eyes for a minute, saying a silent prayer for his safety, and the safety of those traveling with him.

"Okay," she said, reaching up to hug him. "Don't you forget to call me. Be safe."

"We will," Jim said. He released her and turned to the truck. "Tell Simon and Duncan thanks for loading the truck. You guys ready?"

Manoucheka, who was dressed similarly to when she'd accompanied Jim to the airport, climbed into the cab of the truck, and Leonard followed. Jim gave Elise one more smile that she returned tightly before climbing into the driver's seat.

He looked over at his two companions with a smile as he turned the truck and headed down the access road, everyone getting a jolt as he went over a ditch in the road.

"Damn it, Jim!" Leonard exclaimed, rubbing his head.

Jim looked over at him with a smile. "Bones…buckle up!"


	7. Chapter 7

**Title:** The Defining Time  
**Author:** Caera1996  
**Rating:** R/NC-17  
**Disclaimer:** Not mine

* * *

**-Time, Interrupted—**

"Jim, are you lost?"

Jim glanced away from the road to glance across Manny to Bones, who was watching him with a skeptical look.

"If I'm lost, it's because my navigator doesn't know how to read a map," he replied, pointedly looking at the map Bones was holding.

Manny rolled her eyes at the both of them and mumbled under her breath before saying, "We should have stopped to _ask_," she said. "When we passed by the village a few minutes ago."

Jim chuckled and glanced over at her. Some things about men and women were completely universal. Bones just snapped the map in his hands and went back to trying to figure out where they were exactly.

After another twenty minutes of looking for a bridge over a river that would indicate they needed to bear to the right, Jim saw a group of men walking along the side of the road. One of them looked as if he was hurt, supported by one of the others as he took slow, hopping steps. Jim pressed his lips together, his hands gripping the steering wheel until his knuckles were white.

This wasn't the first time he'd seen a configuration like this. The landscape had been completely different, but the feeling in his gut was the same.

"Bones, lock your door," Jim said. He hit his own lock and moved as far to the other side of the road as he could.

"Why?" Leonard asked, looking across Manny at Jim, puzzled by the tone of his voice, and followed Jim's eye line to the pedestrians ahead. "Looks like someone's hurt. We should stop."

"Just lock your door," Jim said again. Without waiting for Leonard to respond, Manny reached across him and hit the locking mechanism. Rolling down his window half way, he slowed only enough to be able to talk to them quickly as he divided his attention between the road and the…six, he counted…men walking together.

"You okay? Uh…Ou byen?" Jim called.

One of the men closest to the road moved as if he was going to step in front of the truck. Jim let his foot up on the gas, but didn't hit the brakes.

"Non," the man called back. He gestured to the injured man being held up by the other two. "Li se blese ak malad. Nou bezwen èd."

"He says the man is hurt and sick and they need help," Manny murmured from beside Jim.

Jim slowed even further, and again the man moved as if to put himself in front of the truck. He struggled with indecision for a moment. As was policy, he was were unarmed, they had a lot of materials that could make unscrupulous people a lot of money, if that's what they wanted it for, and they were in a fairly quiet area…an unpaved backroad with forest and field surrounding them. He tried to see if they were carrying anything that could be used as a weapon – or any actual weapons – but it was really impossible to tell.

"There's the bridge!" Manny called out, pointing off to Jim's left. And that made the decision for him. They weren't all that far from where they were headed. These people might not have any ill intention towards them at all, but there was no way to know that for sure, and other ambushes had happened in situations similar to this one. Jim was responsible for two people right now…one who would be at particular risk if these guys weren't on the right side of things.

"We'll send help…stay there," Jim called. He looked over at Manny. "Manny…how do you..?"

"Rete tann gen," she said.

"Rete tann gen!" Jim repeated. He put his foot back on the gas, and registered that the man yelled a curse at him as they drove away, at the same time Bones looked at Jim incredulously.

"Jim, what the hell are you doing?" Leonard asked. "They needed help!"

"It's not safe to stop with a situation like that," Jim said. He took a breath and made a conscious effort to relax himself, flexing his fingers and loosening his grip on the steering wheel. "We can send a group of people to help him when we get there."

"Jim…that man might've been really hurt and sick!" Leonard shouted. "Just….let me out with some supplies and come back for me. We're right here..."

"Yeah, or he could not be!" Jim shouted back. He glanced at Manny, who looked like she was trying to make herself as small as possible between them. He made a conscious effort to reign in his temper. _He doesn't know,_ Jim reminded himself. _He's never experienced it._ "Bones," he said in a more level tone. "There were six of them. We're alone, with no way to protect ourselves, and vulnerable. Maybe they were completely harmless…but we aren't in the position to take that risk." He subtly nodded to Manny, and was relieved when Bones seemed to subside a little.

He didn't like it. Everything that made him a doctor made him want to make Jim pull over. On the other hand, he knew Jim well enough to know that there would have to be a good reason for him to not do something for someone who was in need. And it wasn't just the two of them, either. Jim was right…they had Manny to think about.

"We need to send people as soon as we get there," Leonard said.

Jim nodded. "We will. We should be there in just a couple of minutes."

"And I want to be with them," he added.

Jim rolled his eyes. He knew it wasn't going to be that easy. There was no way Jim was letting him go out on his own. But they'd deal with that later, and he said as much. "Once we get there we'll figure out the best way to handle it."

Leonard bristled at that, ready to argue that Jim wasn't in charge of him, but before he could start that particular argument, their destination came into sight. The road widened out and was paved as they drove towards the little village. Located on the northwest side of the area affected by the earthquake, it was far enough away from the epicenter to escape a lot of the primary damage. There were very few buildings more than one story tall, and most were shakily constructed out of whatever materials could be found – but they were standing. Thank God.

Unfortunately, it wasn't that simple. Although the village didn't suffer much damage, the people were still suffering. Most of those who lived here and had a job worked in some capacity in the city, and even now the city was at a complete standstill. Hotels, schools, hospitals, stores, museums, city facilities…most of it was either destroyed, or still completely closed. And what wasn't closed or destroyed was being used as emergency shelter and medical centers for the displaced and injured. The earthquake itself might've only directly affected the structures in about 40 miles from the epicenter, but the ripple effect was being felt much further than that.

As they drove through the main street, it was immediately evident how crowded it was. With nearly a million people displaced every place that could take more people, did. Families opened their homes to relatives, friends, and strangers, coming together to try to rebuild lives. But that hospitality caused its own problems. Close-quartered living made it easier for disease to spread, and people weren't getting proper care.

Driving through the street slowly, the truck garnered a lot of attention and kids ran along to follow them. Jim slowed even further, paranoid about the possibility of one of them darting in front of the truck.

Leonard glanced over at Jim, as he folded up the map he was still holding. "Where are we headed Jim?" he asked.

"There's an orphanage here, run by a Catholic organization. They're sheltering some of the quake survivors from the city. That's where the outbreak is."

"What?" Leonard asked, horrified. "They didn't separate the patients from _children_? Jim…what the ever-loving…"

"Bones," Jim interrupted, glancing over at him and then at Manny. For a doctor, he could be remarkably insensitive to other people's feelings. Jim knew it wasn't that he didn't care, just that he didn't always stop to consider what he was saying. That, apparently, hadn't changed in the year they were apart. "There's no place else for them to go. Everyone is doing the best they can."

Leonard kept the rest of what he wanted to say about the way this particular situation was being handled caught behind tightly clenched teeth. This was going to be an exercise in restraint. He knew he was going to have to work in less-than-ideal conditions – and he knew that Jim would want him to do that without pissing people off…he just really hoped to God whoever was in charge there now had the foresight to separate the children from the patients, and keep them separated.

Though not usually deadly, the key to handling measles was treating the symptoms…and sometimes the symptoms could involve respiratory issues that he seriously doubted they had the equipment to deal with. Children, with their still-developing immune symptoms, could also fall victim to secondary infections like pneumonia…and _that_ could be deadly.

Moments later, the orphanage came into sight. On a small campus that included a church building and a building used as a school, Manny had to smile at the sight that greeted them. This…this is why she loved children. All of the terrible happening all around, and yet here they were, playing a game of soccer. Girls and boys of all ages ran back and forth on an expanse of grass, all trying to gain control of the ball. There were way too many kids on the "field" between the two teams. And…she realized as she watched…there were two too many balls.

There was a lot of bad things happening right now, but here…kids were laughing and playing, and the sun was shining and the breeze was blowing…and there was still happiness to be had. That was important to know, and it lightened her a little bit. Everything would be okay. _I will be okay,_ she thought to herself. That had become her mantra…her daily prayer…and she was really starting to believe it.

They pulled up and parked next to a couple of other vehicles that were parked in front of the school. As Jim stepped out of the truck, he looked around for someone to talk to. Just as they were about to head over to the field where the kids were playing and under the watchful eyes of a few women, the door to the school opened and Jim raised a hand in greeting.

"Hello!" he said. "I'm Jim Kirk…from the Petionville Red Cross relief group. Someone here spoke to Elise?"

"Yes, thank you for coming!" The older man replied. "I'm Father Joseph Matier…welcome to Saint Lucy's Church and Orphanage. I believe it was Brian who spoke to your Elise."

Jim nodded. He knew Brian Cox…another Red Cross volunteer. "It's good to meet you, Father. I'm Jim, this is Dr. Leonard McCoy, and this is Manny…Manoucheka," Jim introduced them. "We're here to help for a couple of days until the rest of Brian's group gets here."

"And I am grateful to you. We are in desperate need of additional help. Come on inside…we're using this building for those who are ill."

"I assume…are the children kept away from the patients?" Leonard asked, freeing his medical bag from the back of the truck.

"Yes, Doctor," Joseph replied. "And I have asked the Sisters who work with the patients to not work with the children without a thorough wash and changing their clothing."

"Are all the adults here vaccinated?" Leonard questioned. He never before considered religious groups in the country. The nuns and priests part of the larger Catholic community never even came into his mind before now.

"Yes, we are all vaccinated. Some of the children are, as well. Though most only received the first in the series."

Leonard nodded, and let himself breathe a sigh of relief. It wasn't nearly as bad as he thought. The fact that the patients were all kept in a separate building was huge.

"Okay," he said. "I'd like to see where the patients, and if we could get some help…I have some medication to help mitigate symptoms in the supplies…" Leonard and Joseph walked into the building as he took charge of the situation. It annoyed Jim a little, but he understood. Bones had felt out of his depth for most of his time here. This is the type of thing he felt comfortable dealing with…taking control of the medical situation was natural to him. He rolled his eyes and Manny giggled as they followed them into the building.

"We have separated the children who are ill from the adults. We have asked the parents to not stay, so that they do not go home and make other children sick," he was explaining.

Leonard looked at him, impressed. "I have to be honest, Father, I wasn't expecting this level of containment here."

He looked at Leonard over his glasses, his careworn face serious. "This is not, as they say, my first time at the rodeo, Doctor. Illness is not uncommon." Leonard glanced back at Jim, giving him a significant look, and Jim nodded in understanding at the silent apology for earlier.

"Some of the people who live in the village are helping…some have medical training," Joseph continued. He pushed open a door to one of the classrooms. They followed him inside, looking around. All of the desks had been pushed away and stacked along the back wall. About twenty matts were laid out and each was occupied by an adult patient. Three volunteers were moving among them, helping them take sips of water, placing damp cloths on their heads, or for those who were recovering and gaining their appetites back, helping them with some broth.

The room was warm, even with the open windows and fans, and the sound of coughing filled the small space. Leonard felt his heart go out to the people who were sick…lying on the floor, feverish, hot…it was obviously miserable.

Manny's eyes landed on one of the women who was crouching down to help feed someone soup. Her heart stopped for a moment as she realized who she was looking at…but…it wasn't possible, was it? Was it really…

"Nadege?" Manny whispered. Her eyes filled with tears. "Matant?" she said louder.

The woman looked up, and Jim saw it the second she registered who she was looking at.

"Oh, God bless….Manoucheka…" she stood and moved to them, arms outstretched. Manny let out a sound like a choked-back sob as she reached her, falling into her arms. And as her aunt, who Manny was sure had died when the hospital she'd worked in collapsed, closed her arms around her, all of the pain and fear and heartache she'd been holding back for two months seemed to burst out of her at once.

Crying against her aunt's shoulder, she barely heard what she was murmuring to her. She let herself be led out of the room, to give the patients peace, and as she went she caught sight of Jim's face…and he looked stricken.

She couldn't control herself just yet, so she just clutched her aunt and pressed her face to her shoulder as she cried and tried to breathe…thanking God that He'd brought her here today.


End file.
